Suleyman Demirel

Sami Suleyman Gundogdu Demirel (1 November 1924-17 June 2015) was Prime Minister of Turkey from 21 October 1965 to 16 March 1971 (succeeding Suat Hayri Urguplu and preceding Nihat Erim), from 31 March 1975 to 21 June 1977 (succeeding Sadi Irmak and preceding Bulent Ecevit) from 21 July 1977 to 5 January 1978 (interrupting Ecevit's terms), from 12 November 1979 to 12 September 1980 (succeeding Ecevit and preceding Turhan Feyizoglu), and from 20 November 1991 to 16 May 1993 (succeeding Mesut Yilmaz and preceding Erdal Inonu; he also served as President of Turkey from 16 May 1993 to 16 May 2000, succeeding Turgut Ozal and preceding Ahmed Necdet Sezer. Demirel was the leader of the conservative Democrat Party of Turkey (DYP).

Biography
Suleyman Demirel was born in Islamkoi, Turkey on 1 November 1924, and he studied civil engineering at Istanbul Technical University and became a civil servant. He joined the right-wing Justice Party of Turkey, whose chairman he became in 1964. As Prime Minister, he supported his agricultural consistencies through major state investment in infrastructure. At the same time, he fostered good relations with the business community through his encouragement of private investment and free trade. He resigned in 1971 when the military demanded a number of policies under threat of intervention. He remained the leader of his party and, together with Bulent Ecevit, dominated Turkish politics throughout the 1970s. He was deposed by the military in 1980 and temporarily imprisoned, only to be released in 1983. Demirel was forbidden to take part in any political activity for ten years, but he instigated the "Grand Turkey Party". The party was not allowed to contest elections since it was seen as a direct successor to the now-outlawed Justice Party. Demirel tried once more with the formation of the DYP, which he came to lead officially after the ban on political activity was lifted in 1987. He won the 1991 elections, and in 1993 was elected President by Parliament. He left office in 2000, and he died in 2015.